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Hit 50 false alarms from one house and it made me rethink a basic rule

I mean, this place in Springfield had a motion sensor that kept tripping, and after the 50th call from the monitoring center I went back to check the install. Turns out the homeowner's new ceiling fan was causing a draft that moved a curtain just enough to set it off, which I never would have guessed from the initial walkthrough. Has anyone else had a simple environmental change cause that many headaches after you thought the job was done right?
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4 Comments
jade517
jade5171mo ago
Gently push back on the fish tank story, because that's actually a pretty common myth. A fish tank can't start a fire from a lens effect unless the water is like SUPER still and the sun is at a very specific angle. Most tanks have pumps and filters that disturb the water surface enough to prevent focused light. The real danger with fish tanks is usually electrical issues from cheap equipment or water splashing onto power strips, not magnification. So while it's smart to keep tanks out of direct sun to prevent algae, the whole "it'll burn your house down" thing is way overblown. I've seen that same story pop up on Facebook every year since like 2012 with zero proof.
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dylan376
dylan3762mo ago
Oh man, that's the worst. I had a similar thing with a sunbeam hitting a glass vase just right, heating up a tiny spot on the floor enough to trip a heat sensor.
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paigep85
paigep852mo ago
Read about a guy whose fish tank lens effect started a small fire on his wooden table.
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mary_west
mary_west2mo ago
Ever think about moving your tank, @paigep85? I keep mine out of direct sun after a scare like that.
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